


Les Fleurs Tragiques

by megaotaku98



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Getting Together, Hanahaki AU, Humor, Jisung is very perceptive, M/M, MinChan rise bitch, chan is a great friend, minho is oblivious, rated for swearing and blood and references to sex, tw:mention of blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:29:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27596185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/megaotaku98/pseuds/megaotaku98
Summary: Minho starts coughing up flower petals, the symptoms of the rare Hanahaki disease.But there's one problem- he isn't in love with anyone.
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Minho | Lee Know, side binsung - Relationship
Comments: 28
Kudos: 268





	Les Fleurs Tragiques

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Hello Hello!  
> Honestly I thought my small break was going to last a lot longer than two weeks (I grounded myself from writing until I got caught up on my schoolwork, which I finally did over the weekend- if you follow me on Twitter you probably already knew this)  
> So I honestly never expected that I would make a Hanahaki au, but then I was talking to my best friend about the fact that I'd never thought of writing one, and then my brain immediately went "alright so what if-" and...the rest is history.  
> The potential for angst with this type of au is just, so fantastic. But I also waned to add a bit of humor into the mix! So the tone sorta jumps back and forth a bit lol  
> The title is french for "the tragic flowers", I've been studying the language for a year and a half and I wanted to flex a little bit.
> 
> Flower meanings: (pay attention to these!)  
> Daffodil- unrequited love  
> Geranium- stupid/foolish  
> Snapdragon- desire  
> Red carnation- my heart aches for you
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

When Minho coughed up the first petal, he didn’t really think anything of it. 

Sure, it was weird, but it was a single petal. Maybe it flew into his mouth earlier or something. He didn’t recall ever walking past any daffodils, but it’s not like he was the most observant person in the world.

Minho just tossed the petal into the garbage and walked back over to the living room, rejoining his best friend Chan on the couch to resume the show they had been watching all evening. He draped himself across Chan’s lap and picked up the remote again, hitting play.

“That was a nasty sounding cough,” Chan said, “you getting sick?”

Minho shrugged. “Maybe. I’ll drink orange juice more often.”

They were hanging out at Minho’s place, Chan escaping from his apartment since it was date night for his two roommates, and he didn’t like being there when Jisung and Changbin got back home and continued said date in their room.

Chan let out a yawn. “I’m getting sleepy.”

“You? Sleepy?” Minho snorted, “that’s a first.”

“Shut uuup,” Chan whined, lightly hitting Minho’s arm.

“You should probably head home then,” Minho said.

“And listen to Bin and Sung going at it? I’ll pass. Can’t I just crash here?”

Minho let out a sigh. It was always impossible to say no to Chan…

“You’re lucky you’re cute. And huggable,” he relented, and Chan laughed.

Minho’s apartment only had one bedroom, but it wasn’t a huge deal. They’d shared a bed numerous times. Starting from a drunken night a few years back; after Chan was too smashed to go back home, and Minho just tugged him under the blankets with a “fuck it just sleep here”.

So yeah, they cuddled. Not super often, because they weren’t dating. It’s not gay to cuddle the homies! Didn’t mean they’re in love or anything.

Not that Minho didn’t love Chan, he did. Platonically. They’d been there for each other, through thick and thin. They were the closest of friends, the kind that were “let’s raise our families next to each other and have our kids be best friends too” level of close.

And it wasn't like they were straight either- far from it. They were just _really really good friends._

The next morning, Minho coughed up three more daffodil petals. What the hell? He definitely didn’t make a habit of eating yellow flowers.

He was holding the petals in his palm as Chan woke up from the sound of Minho’s coughing.

“Min, are you okay?” he asked, looking over Minho’s shoulder, “wait, are those petals?”

“Yeah...weird, right?” Minho replied, “they were in my throat for some reason.”

“Uh, Min…” Chan said, his voice sounding nervous, “you know that one rare disease…”

“What one?”

“Hanahaki.”

“What?” Minho looked over at Chan with bewilderment, “that one? No way.”

“What do you mean, ‘no way’, you just coughed up flower petals!”

“That disease is caused by unrequited love, right?”

“Yeah. So, who is it?” Chan questioned.

“No one,” answered Minho, “I can’t have Hanahaki, because I’m not in love with anyone.”

Chan just blinked at him. “...huh??”

“I’m not in love with anyone,” Minho repeated, “haven’t been for months, you know I’ve been enjoying the single life! My only loves are my beautiful cats.”

“Then...what are you dealing with?”

“I don’t know! It’s probably nothing.”

“At least have a doctor check it out though,” Chan said, giving Minho a worried look.

“Alright fine,” Minho agreed, “I’ll go later today.”

  
  


And he did, he booked an appointment and walked in later that afternoon.

“I coughed up flower petals a couple of times,” Minho told his doctor.

“Petals? Oh my, sounds like Hanahaki,” she said.

“Well here’s the thing,” Minho explained, ”I’m not in love with anyone,” 

His doctor raised her eyebrows.

“Not that you know of, maybe,” she countered.

“.....I’m sorry, what?”

“This disease can be sneaky,” she continued, “there have been cases before where the person didn’t even realize their true feelings until it was too late.”

“So you’re saying...that I _am_ in love with someone….but I don’t know who?”

The doctor nodded, jotting something down on her clipboard. 

“It’s amazing how oblivious we can be to our own emotions. It’s probably been in front of you the whole time. The earlier you find out the better, so then we can figure out whether to have the surgery to remove the flowers or not,” she advised.

“The surgery…that makes you forget all about the person you’re in love with, right? What if it’s one of my friends? I don’t want to forget them…”

“Don’t worry, you can always create new memories! It’s the best course of action.”

Minho sighed. “Alright, well I suppose I better find out who this person is then….”

After Minho left the doctor’s office, the first thing he did was call Chan.

“So it is Hanahaki. But I just don’t know who I’m in love with,” he said.

 _“That makes….so little sense,”_ Chan replied.

“Apparently I’m oblivious. So now I just need to figure out who I have feelings for.”

_“Why bother? Just get the surgery.”_

“What?”

_“Won’t it just be more painful if you find out who? Just get it done and then you won’t even know.”_

“But I might forget all about someone close to me!”

_“Yeah, but you won’t know that, will you? And you can just make new memories. Or we can trigger back the old ones but like, minus the you being in love with them part. It's the best choice Min, you know this disease is fatal. I don't want to lose my best friend.”_

“I'll...I'll think about it. Plus who knows, maybe I can get that person to love me back! Which will make the flowers go away!”

_“Well I suppose that’s also an option. But still! Keep my idea as a plan B!”_

“Yeah, yeah, I will. I’ll talk to you later. Love you~”

_“Love you too~”_

And with that, Minho hung up and headed home.

He spent the rest of the day trying to figure out who he could possibly be in love with, starting with his close circle of friends.

Obviously, it wasn’t Chan. No point looking any further into that option.

Felix? He was cute, and basically sunshine personified. But he gave off a little brother vibe….so not him.

He practically grew up with Jisung, so it certainly wasn’t him. He literally was the younger brother Minho had never asked for.

Changbin...they wouldn’t be compatible. He was more annoying than endearing.

Hyunjin was more of a lovable victim to mercilessly tease than a potential love interest.

Jeongin...definitely not. Jeongin was like the son he never gave birth to.

Seungmin….Seungmin could be a possibility. They had a love-hate frenemy thing going on, maybe his weak level of hate wasn’t actually that? But then Minho thought about kissing Seungmin, and...okay no. Absolutely not Seungmin.

All in all his friends were like family to him, and therefore none of them could be a possibility. So, Minho was going to have to broaden his horizons.

He decided to start with his dance co-workers and old sunbaes.

“Jimin-hyung maybe? He’s certainly good looking, and I’ve always admired him as a dancer.”

“Hm...maybe,” Chan said, listening to Minho ramble, “but isn’t he married?”

They were at Chan’s place this time, cleaning up the kitchen so they could make dinner- Jisung and Changbin were on their way back with groceries.

“The whole point is that it’s unrequited, right? So it could be literally anyone. If it’s someone spoken for, I’ll get the surgery. If it’s someone single, I’ll try to get them to love me back,” Minho answered.

Right as Minho finished speaking, the door opened, signaling the return of Chan’s roommates.

“Oh Minho-hyung’s here, what’s up?” Changbin said, hanging up his car keys on a little hook by the door, while Jisung walked over to the sink and poured himself some water.

“We’re trying to figure out who Minho’s in love with,” Chan answered, walking over to start putting the groceries away.

“What? Why would you need to do that?” asked Changbin, “I thought Minho-hyung was happy being single?”

“I caught Hanahaki disease,” Minho answered, casually leaning forward against the island counter.

There was the sound of glass shattering. Jisung had dropped his cup.

“You caught WHAT?” he shrieked, looking horrified.

“Chill out Sung, I’ll be fine, Minho reassured him, "once I figure out who I have these apparent feelings for then I’ll be able to deal with it.”

“Yeah but what if you don’t? And you die?? You’re not allowed to die!! Who else am I supposed to annoy if you die?!” Jisung exclaimed.

Minho sighed, “my god, you are so dramatic, I’m not going to die!”

“You’re not allowed to die, okay?” Jisung repeated, eyes tearing up and lip trembling.

“Alright, c’mere babe you need a hug,” Changbin said, tugging Jisung into his arms.

“What about Momo? She’s one of your co-workers, right?” Chan suggested, going back to the original topic at hand.

Minho shook his head. “I’m not into women, remember?”

“Oh right, I forgot.”

“It would have been a good setup though, since she’s got a good relationship going. Hmm…”

“Did you consider any of us?” Changbin asked.

Minho nodded, “you guys were the first people I thought of. But all of you are like family to me, so there’s no way it’s a possibility.”

“Are you sure?” questioned Jisung, pulling away from Changbin slightly.

Minho turned to look at him. “What do you mean?”

Jisung’s eyes darted back and forth- looking from Minho to Chan, Chan to Minho.

“I mean...I don’t know, maybe mull it over again?” he suggested.

“Aw Sungie, do you think I’m in love with you?” Minho cooed teasingly.

Jisung’s face shifted to disgust. “Gross. I hope not. You’re like my second mom.”

Minho started cackling, and Chan laughed along with him. When Minho glanced over, he could see Chan’s adorable dimples on full display, as they always were when he laughed.

“But seriously,” Jisung said, looking back and forth between the two again, “think it over again.”

Minho rolled his eyes and went back to listing people.

“What about Jinhyuk, it could be him.”

“Your ex-boyfriend from college?” Chan asked.

“Yeah, maybe I never got over him,” Minho suggested.

“But you guys broke up because you drifted apart,” Jisung cut in, “you literally didn’t love each other anymore once you split.”

“Good point...dammit,” Minho cursed, “he sure was a great boyfriend though, I hope he’s doing well.”

“Who’s the last person you had a crush on?” asked Chan.

“Uhhh….that one guy I had a fling with? The guy who was a TA at the university, Jinyoung. I was starting to catch feelings, shame he finished his degree and moved back home.”

“Oh, maybe it’s him!” Chan said.

Minho rubbed his chin, thinking about Jinyoung. He was handsome, very handsome. Very kind, and _excellent_ in bed. But thinking about him…..didn’t make Minho’s heart ache or anything. 

“No, it’s not Jinyoung,” Minho sighed.

“What about the one foreign exchange guy in your dance class?” offered Changbin, “the one that always wore muscle tanks, and was so painfully heterosexual, and was only there for a semester?”

“Aw man I hated that guy,” Chan said with a frown.

“I barely talked to him, there’s no way!” Minho shot down.

Changbin shrugged. “Just a suggestion. I remember Hyunjin telling me that you would not shut up about his arms.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Minho noticed Chan looking at his own arms.

“Sure he was hot, but it was just eye candy,” Minho argued, “besides, he got kinda weird around me after he found out I’m gay, which turned me off a lot.”

“And that’s why I hated him!” added Chan.

“Although it is worth considering I suppose,” Minho added thoughtfully.

“If it’s him please get the surgery,” Chan said, “he is _so_ forgettable.”

“Please, you were just jealous that he was buffer than you,” Minho snickered.

“I- I was not!” Chan sputtered.

“It was like a dick measuring contest, it was so ridiculous. The most hetero thing I’ve ever seen you do Chan-hyung.”

Chan looked borderline insulted, then just started sulking with his arms crossed.

“See?” Minho continued, “I’m right and you know I’m right.”

“Anyways,” Chan said, still pouting, “who else is on your list?”

Minho racked his brain, trying to think of more possible candidates, but…

“I….got nothing. Seriously, I have no clue who it could be.”

“Alright then just get the surgery,” Chan stated, shrugging.

“Woah, hold on a second!” Jisung interjected, “are you _sure_ hyung? Like I said, maybe mull it all over again.”

“I’m not in love with Changbin either,” Minho said, rolling his eyes.

“Wha- no, that’s not what I meant!” Jisung exclaimed.

“It’s not even that bad right now, there’s still plenty of time to figure it out,” Minho continued, and Jisung let out a sigh of relief.

Chan shrugged again. “I still say get the surgery.”

  
  
  


So far it was only daffodil petals that Minho was coughing up, and it was pretty infrequent for several weeks.

Then, he started to cough up blue petals- geraniums. That...wasn’t very good.

And Minho still had no idea who he was in love with!

Chan kept bringing up the surgery and saying he should get it, and started coming over more often, worried about Minho’s health. Not that this was much different from usual, he was just staying overnight more often in case Minho had any morning coughing fits.

Jisung visited more often too, for the same reasons. And he kept bringing up Chan at the _weirdest_ moments.

“You and Chan-hyung are close, right? Like, _super_ close,” he said when they were out for lunch, “closer than you and I are, and we’ve been friends since junior high.”

“Uh, yeah? What about it?” Minho answered.

“Almost seems like you’re dating.”

“Except we aren’t? Where are you going with this?”

“....nevermind.”

And then again while watching a movie together:

“Chan-hyung….so what do you think about him?”

“Weird question but okay. Hyung is super kind and caring, he has a lovely singing voice, he’s a very talented composer, his hugs feel like warm sunshine on a summer day, and he’s the best kind of friend anyone could ever ask for. Why are you asking?”

“Would you say he’s good...partner material?”

“Sung….is everything okay with Changbin? Are you guys opening your relationship or something?” 

“What? No- just forget it.”

One evening Jisung directly asked, “have you considered that you might be in love with Chan-hyung?”

Minho just started laughing, “don’t be ridiculous! No way, it’s absolutely not him.”

Eventually, Jisung seemed to give up.

Meanwhile, Chan was just...an absolute _saint_. He brought over tea and syrup to soothe the coughing, put tissue boxes all over the place, and just being an overall comforting presence. 

Which really came in handy, because it kept getting worse- more frequent coughing, and more petals each time, constant daffodils and geraniums. And it was kind of weird, it seemed to happen more often when Chan was there. Minho couldn’t figure out why, and wondered if maybe the affection Chan gave him was what was making it worse- a subconscious reminder of the supposed love that wasn’t returned, maybe?

One night, Chan had just taken a shower and was walking around in only a towel. Minho couldn’t help but stare a little. Yeah, Chan was just a friend, but Minho had eyes, okay? And objectively, Chan was basically sex on legs. Objectively.

Minho was about to comically wolf whistle at his best friend, but then he started coughing again. And he noticed a new petal had joined the mix. It looked like...snapdragon?

Chan rushed over the moment Minho started to cough, making sure he was alright, and Minho realized that the towel around his hips was not very secure. And there were parts of Chan he really did _not_ want to see.

“Oh my god please put some pants on,” Minho demanded, after he finished spitting out all the petals in his mouth.

Chan looked confused. “But you-”

“I’ll be fine just please put _something_ on!”

Chan hurried away and came back a few minutes later in a pair of Minho’s boxers. Huh. They were a pretty good fit on him.

He coughed again, more petals coming up.

“Min, you’ve gotta get the surgery,” Chan said, looking worried, “this is just getting worse and worse.”

“Yeah but there isn’t blood, right?” Minho answered, “I’ve still got plenty of time. I’ll be okay, I promise.”

Chan still looked concerned, but he nodded and stepped away, going to grab some more cough syrup.

Another week passed; more coughing, more petals. Chan constantly looked worried, as did Jisung. In fact, all of Minho’s friends got more and more concerned about his possibility of recovery, looking at him as if he was about to drop dead at any second.

One evening, one of the rare ones that Chan wasn’t there, Jisung waltzed in, saying “alright hyung, this is taking too long and my hints aren’t working.”

“Hints? What hints?” Minho asked, confused.

“Hyung,” Jisung continued, placing his hands on each of Minho’s shoulders, “it’s Chan-hyung. It’s been Chan-hyung the whole time.”

“Chan-hyung? What are you-”

“You’re in love with Chan-hyung.”

Minho scoffed, “I already told you that’s ridiculous.”

“Is it? Is it really? Did you spend more than ten seconds thinking about the possibility or did you just think ‘oh there’s no way’ and push it aside?”

“I-”

“You spend time with him almost constantly, he's the first person you share any type of news with, you always invite him if we do something as a group, you're always cuddling him and sitting next to him, you stare at him with this goofy grin on your face, and anytime you say something funny you always look at him to see if he's laughing. You're in love with Chan-hyung. It's been so _obvious_ this whole time I have _no_ clue how you didn't see it. I've known for months!”

“M-months? No that’s...there’s no way-”

Minho started to think. To think about it. To imagine himself with Chan, as more than friends. Think about kissing him. Holding that handsome face in his hands, and tasting that adorable smile, and-

Oh.

Oh shit.

Oh shit it was Chan. It was Chan the whole time.

Minho was in love with Chan. Chan was the one who didn’t love him back.

He suddenly keeled over, in the worst coughing fit so far. When he pulled his hand away, he felt a chill run down his spine.

_There was blood._

Jisung looked over at Minho’s hand as well and his eyes widened.

“Oh no,” he said quietly, sounding horrified, “what have I done? I made it worse oh god-”

“Wait no- don’t blame yourself,” Minho interrupted.

“Don’t blame myself? I told you the truth and you immediately got _way_ worse! How is this not my fault??”

“It’s fine I’ll just get the surgery!”

“And forget Chan-hyung??”

That made Minho freeze. Forget Chan? Every single memory? No...no he didn’t want to do that. There was _so much_ they had gone through together. Forgetting all of it….

And when Chan inevitably found out it was him? He would be _crushed_. He would probably put the blame on himself, because that’s what he always did. He took responsibility even when it wasn’t his fault. 

“Shit,” Minho said, “I can’t forget Chan…”

“This is why I kept stalling you. If you got the surgery without a second thought you’d forget Chan-hyung and it would just….get messy,” Jisung responded.

“Well I’m gonna die if I don’t do _something_!”

“I mean, I’m pretty sure he likes you too?”

“If Chan liked me back I wouldn’t be in this fiasco in the first place, would I?”

“Oh yeah...good point. I mean, how hard could it be to get him to like you back? You guys are practically married already.”

“But how much time do I even have left?” Minho demanded, “coughing up blood isn’t exactly a good sign, Jisung.”

“Luckily we can start right now,” said Jisung, “Chan-hyung’s already on his way over.”

Minho stared at Jisung in disbelief. “He’s _what_?!”

“Yeah, I texted him right after you started coughing.”

The door flew open, Chan rushing in and crying out “Minho are you okay?? Are you really coughing up blood??”

“I-I’m fine, Chan-hyung…” Minho said nervously.

Now that he realized his feelings, he seemed to see Chan in a whole new light.

He really was handsome...like, ridiculously pretty. Which Minho already knew of course but now, he was _pretty_ pretty.

Chan ran over to Minho’s side and gave him a hug. Minho hugged back, nuzzling against him a little bit. He felt so warm...

“Minho, you have to get the surgery,” Chan said.

Minho pulled away in a panic. ”No!”

“No?” Chan echoed.

“I just- there’s gotta be another way. Maybe I can get over it, or move on or something.”

“But if you’re coughing up blood now...Min you have like, weeks left, maybe a month if you’re lucky,” Chan argued, “this is going to kill you...I can’t stand to see that. Please, get the surgery.”

Minho looked away. “I can’t...I just can’t.”

Chan let out a sigh, but dropped the subject- he knew how stubborn Minho could be.

After that, Minho’s condition steadily worsened. 

Red carnation petals started showing up amongst the others, and Minho was coughing nearly all the time.

Chan being around wasn’t helping, at all. Minho had to ask Jisung to try and get Chan to spend more time with the others, so his cough wouldn’t be aggravated. Because it turned out it wasn’t the affection that made things worse, it was just being close to Chan. The man that he was in love with. And it honestly hurt more, because Chan was being so _caring_ , it almost felt like he returned Minho's feelings. But obviously, he didn't.

Jisung still wanted Minho to try and get Chan to love him back, but with his health deteriorating it was kinda difficult to even think of _how_.

Soon it got bad enough that Minho had to be hospitalized, trying to keep the flowers at bay. His breathing became more difficult, and they put him on an oxygen machine. Chan refused to leave his side.

Chan became _desperate_ , literally _begging_ Minho to just get the surgery already. But Minho couldn't just forget years of friendship. And even if he made new memories, it just wouldn't be the same. It hurt though, having to tell Chan that he wouldn't and not being able to tell him why, because he knew that would just _break_ Chan.

All Minho could do was hope that something would click in his idiot best friend's head and he'd return Minho's feelings.

That, or he hoped death would be painless.

  
  


One evening, Minho woke up from a nap to the muffled sound of raised voices. He couldn't tell what was being said, and glanced over to look through the window of the door. He could make out Jisung, looking panicked. And then there was also Chan, looking angry and confused. They were arguing, although Minho had no clue what it was about.

He saw Jisung say something that made Chan freeze, shock across his face. He shook his head. Then looked over at Minho through the window, shaking his head again.

The door flew open and Minho tried to sit up as Chan stormed in, Jisung following behind and looking guilty.

"Is it me?" Chan asked.

"What?" Minho asked back.

"Am I the one you're in love with?"

"I'm sorry hyung," Jisung said, "he just wouldn't stop asking why you shouldn't get the surgery….it just slipped out." 

Minho looked at the two of them, then looked away, and nodded.

"Fuck," Chan cursed, reaching up to grip his hair as he turned away, "why didn't you say something?"

"Because I knew you'd react like this," Minho answered, "hyung you always take the blame for things that aren't your fault and I knew you would blame yourself. You're already doing it now, aren't you?"

"If I had just noticed…" Chan said, voice breaking.

"I didn't even notice!" Minho exclaimed, "if Jisung hadn't spelled it out I probably never would have known! This isn't your fault."

"But still-" Chan's voice broke again, and when he turned back Minho saw that he was crying. He took a deep breath, and then said, "get the surgery."

"What? No, I'm not-" 

"I would rather have you forget me entirely than lose you forever Minho. You're too important to me. I love you too much, okay? Get the surgery. _Please_ ," Chan begged.

Shit. Now Minho was starting to cry. Because Chan was upset, because Chan made a good point, and because his "I love you" would never be meant the way Minho wanted it to mean. 

"I'll…. I'll think about it," he answered, "I'll decide tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay," Chan said, sniffling, "just…. please don't give up your life over our friendship. I'm not going anywhere, whether you remember me or not."

He wiped away his tears, and then walked out of the room, saying he needed some air and a walk to calm down. After he left, Jisung approached the hospital bed.

"Uh, sorry again, for spilling," he said sheepishly, twiddling his thumbs.

"He was going to find out one way or another. It's fine Sung, I'm not mad," Minho replied.

"Well you look upset," Jisung commented.

"It's an overall shitty situation. Not much to be happy about right now."

"Are you going to go through with the surgery?"

"I don't know…" Minho admitted, "I mean at least I know Chan won't go anywhere, but... I still don't want to forget."

"Honestly now that he knows...he makes a good point," Jisung prompted, "none of us want to lose you, especially not me, I mean you're basically the older brother I always wanted!"

"You already have an older brother," Minho countered.

"And he sucks! You're way cooler!"

Minho smiled slightly. "Thanks Sungie. Like I said, I'm gonna think more about it. Alright?"

Jisung nodded, and walked over to hug Minho. Minho heard a couple sniffles and hugged back tighter, waiting for his other best friend to let it all out. 

It was rather late in the evening, so after Jisung left Minho ate dinner and then went back to sleep. The doctor- who had also been pushing rather hard about getting the surgery- checked up on him and bid him goodnight.

The next morning, Minho woke up feeling slightly….better? It was a little easier to breathe. Maybe they amped up the oxygen machine or something? 

Chan must have come back to the room later that night, because he was laying across the small sofa next to the hospital bed, sound asleep. The edges of his eyes were red; Minho wondered just how long he was crying. 

A nurse came in to check Minho's vitals, and asked him about his symptoms and how he was feeling. He told her he was breathing a little easier, and the nurse seemed surprised, before smiling brightly and saying "that's great news!" 

The nurse's voice woke up Chan, who sat up and stretched before also asking Minho how he was feeling. Minho told him the same thing, and Chan sat up straighter as he said "wait, really?" 

Minho started to cough again, and there were still petals. But less blood this time. And the daffodil petals seemed to be gone.

"That's weird…" Minho muttered, "the yellow petals aren't here. They were the ones I coughed up the most."

"Huh," Chan replied, "that is weird."

"Maybe the flowers die off before….y'know…."

"I thought it killed people because it filled their lungs with flowers and they suffocated? This doesn't make sense. Unless...you're recovering?"

Minho blinked at him. "But you don't love me." 

"Sure I do."

"You know what I mean, hyung."

"Oh," Chan said, looking bashful, "right...sorry."

"It's fine, don't beat yourself up over it."

Chan reached out and gently held onto Minho's hands, in a move of comfort. It felt nice, warm.

Minho had said he was going to decide on the surgery today, but...he couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope.

Maybe, rather than Chan feeling the same, Minho was getting over him? Or maybe the universe just decided to take mercy.

But partway through the day, Minho made his decision. He was going to have the operation. He would just have to hope that Chan really would be willing to make new memories with him. So he told the doctors, and the doctors scheduled the surgery for the next day.

Chan looked sad when Minho gave his decision, but he just smiled at Minho and said “you made the right choice. It’s gonna be okay.”

And then he brought the back of Minho's hand up to his mouth and kissed it, which felt...weirdly affectionate in a way that Chan was not usually affectionate. Chan was a hugger and a snuggler, not a kisser. Minho couldn't help but blush. 

The next day came, and when Minho woke up that morning he found he had almost no issues breathing at all. There were less petals when he coughed, and the blood was gone. What….was going on?

Chan said "there's no way", Minho said "okay what the fuck", and the doctors said "it's amazing, you've started to recover!"

Which made Minho look over at Chan, confused.

"Does like, platonic love count or something?" he asked.

"I don't…" Chan's voice trailed off, equally confused.

He blinked several times, looking lost. And then some sort of epiphany appeared on his face and he blushed, vividly.

"Oh my god I love you back," he said quietly.

"....what?" Minho asked, wondering if he'd just heard that correctly.

Chan continued to mumble, "why didn’t I realize- it must have shifted recently- I love you back, Minho I'm in love with you too!"

"What???" Minho exclaimed, in utter disbelief, "but- there's no way-"

"You really are recovering!" Chan said cheerfully, "because I do feel the same! You're going to get better, oh I'm so glad it's all going to be okay!"

"Wait, hold on- Chan calm down for a second!"

Chan calmed down for a second.

"Are you sure?" Minho continued, "are you sure that's it? It's just so...sudden." 

"I know right? It felt like a slap to the face." 

"But I was obliviously in love with you for months. How is it just now changing for you?"

"Well I guess I’ve never cried over any of my other friends before, so that was different."

Minho gave him a look. "Yes you have." 

"You...didn't see the worst of it," Chan admitted, "and well, I was just thinking that I’m so happy because you’re the most important person in my life, and...is that not what love is?"

"I suppose...that makes sense "

"And you're getting better! That's what matters most!"

"But are you sure it's not like, familial love?" Minho questioned skeptically.

"Well I've definitely thought about kissing you a couple times while you were asleep, so I don't think it's familial," responded Chan.

"Oh," Minho said, face hot.

"Still want to, to be honest," Chan admitted, "but I should probably wait until you're much better."

"Okay," Minho replied, face even hotter, "sounds good."

Chan did take hold of Minho's hands again, pressing several kisses over the knuckles. Minho felt like his face was on fire.

The nurse's voice then chimed in, "well I was going to ask how this recovery came to be, but I think the question has been answered. You're very lucky, it was almost too late."

Minho was taken off the oxygen machine later that day, and he could breathe fine again without it! He was still coughing up petals- geranium, snapdragon and carnation- but at least it wasn't bloody anymore. 

He stayed for another week, and at the end of that week only the snapdragon petals remained. Probably leftover pining, Minho guessed, not used to the knowledge that Chan finally loved him back. 

Chan continued to stay at his side, but the atmosphere now was far less gloomy. When the rest of their friend group all found out that Minho was getting better they all came to visit.

Jisung pulled an "I told you so" after Chan shared that he returned Minho's feelings.

"I knew he had to, especially when I left the hospital and saw him right outside the doors, crouched in a fetal position and sobbing his eyes out," Jisung said.

"Says the one who immediately joined me!" Chan argued, ears _bright_ red with embarrassment. 

Jisung's mouth clamped shut and he suddenly found the wall very interesting. Minho just laughed, not surprised in the slightest. Of course Jisung would be a crybaby too.

After the week was up, Minho was able to go back home. And after another week, the petals were completely gone. Which was such a relief- Minho had been nearly ready to accept death, and it was nice to know that he was going to survive after all.

And things basically went back to normal. Well, sort of. There were some differences.

Because now, Minho and Chan were dating. 

After Chan had taken Minho back home when he’d been discharged, Minho immediately tugged him inside and spent the next hour kissing him senseless. 

It didn’t feel all that different, since they already cuddled all the time and shared a bed overnight and spent a lot of time together. But that was now punctuated with kisses, hand holding, and affectionate pet names, as well as all the physical aspects that came from a relationship. 

Chan took great joy in being able to sexile his roommates. Which they did, many times. Minho was pretty sure Jisung and Changbin had started counting down the days until Chan moved out of their apartment and into Minho’s.

  
  


Chan let out a yawn, as the TV continued to play the crime show they’d been watching all evening.

“I’m tired,” he said.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to you saying that,” Minho replied, chuckling.

“You said the same thing about me telling you that I’m in love with you.”

"You being sleepy is a rarer occurrence," Minho countered, and Chan let out a snort, "it is late though, and I have to get up early tomorrow. You should probably head back."

Chan pouted. "Please don't make me go back to a cold empty bed and the potential sounds of my roommates fornicating."

Minho sighed, knowing that trying to resist those puppy eyes was futile.

"You're lucky you're cute. And huggable."

He stood up and headed towards his bedroom, Chan happily tagging along behind him.

**Author's Note:**

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